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by JOE WHITE
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My grandmother lived to be 104 years old. One phrase I heard her use over and over again as a child was, “Never buy a pig in a poke.”
Back then, I had no idea what she meant. As I’ve grown older and gained experience dealing with people, business, and politics, I’ve come to understand exactly what she was trying to teach me.
At 80 years old, I now know that before you trust someone with your money, your business, your vote, or your future, you should take the time to know who they really are.
Since most people only read the headlines, let me begin by giving you my conclusions about gubernatorial candidate Rom Reddy. For those who want to know how I reached these conclusions, I invite you to read “the rest of the story.”
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First, my conclusions…
1. Mr. Reddy has stated that he only decided to run for governor in February of this year. However, I have learned that a Facebook page titled “Reddy for Governor” was registered on November 20, 2024, before being changed later that day to “DOGE SC.” Hmmm!
2. The only things most South Carolinians know about Mr. Reddy are the things he has chosen to tell us. All details of his past have been scrubbed from the internet. Hmmm!
3. Mr. Reddy invited Speaker Murrell Smith and his wife to his Isle of Palms home. Attorney General Alan Wilson told me on January 15, 2026 he was asked by Mr. Reddy to meet with him on January 16, 2026. On two separate occasions, when I asked Mr. Reddy to meet Congressman Ralph Norman, he refused. Hmmm!
4. Mr. Reddy verbally threatened to destroy me and cursed a friend of mine, a businessman from Newberry County, including the use of the “F” word as part of his angry profanity-laced outburst. Hmmm!
5. Mr. Reddy drew leaders of the South Carolina Freedom Caucus into his orbit by presenting himself as someone who believed in our principles and wanted to help us grow our numbers. He later aligned himself with members of the Columbia political establishment and publicly criticized me, former Freedom Caucus Chairman Adam Morgan, and Representative April Cromer verbally and in writing. Hmmm!
6. Mr. Reddy has criticized Ralph Norman for supporting South Carolinian and former governor Nikki Haley, but according to Open Secrets, he and his wife donated $16,600 to Florida governor Ron DeSantis’ Presidential campaign against Donald Trump on December 14, 2023 before Governor Desantis ended his Presidential campaign in January, 2024. He contributed to Nikki Haley’s campaign for governor, Henry McMaster’s campaign for governor, and has contributed to Lindsey Graham‘s past campaigns. Hmmm!
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THE REST OF THE STORY
I first met Rom Reddy on March 28, 2025. That meeting included members of his staff, FITSNews owner and editor Will Folks, State Representative April Cromer, State Representative Jordan Pace, and me.
During that meeting, Mr. Reddy and his DOGE SC political consultant, Wesley Donehue, expressed a desire to work with the South Carolina Freedom Caucus to increase our strength in the State House.
We discussed conservative principles and began identifying districts where conservative challengers might defeat incumbent Republicans.
Mr. Reddy criticized Governor Henry McMaster’s leadership and contrasted him with “his friend,” Ron DeSantis.
When asked who I supported for governor, I replied that I hoped Ralph Norman would run and that I would likely support him. Wesley Donehue immediately responded that Ralph Norman was a loser and should not be governor.
Despite that disagreement, I left cautiously optimistic. That day (March 28, 2025), I posted my positive feelings about Mr. Reddy and his DOGE SC initiative on my Facebook page. Later that day, I thanked Mr. Reddy by text.
On April 4, 2025, I made a $100 contribution to DOGE SC.
On April 14, 2025, I asked Mr. Reddy if he would meet with Congressman Ralph Norman, who I thought might run for governor, a businessman friend from Newberry County, and Solicitor David Stumbo who I thought might run for Attorney General. He responded that DOGE SC was focused on House races and that he did not want to meet Ralph Norman or David Stumbo.
He did agree to meet with my businessman friend from Newberry. That meeting took place on April 17, 2025.
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A TROUBLING CHANGE
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Putting it mildly, the meeting did not go well.
After Mr. Reddy explained his belief that the seawall fine imposed against him by the state of South Carolina was unconstitutional, my friend (well known for his sometimes colorful and profanity laced language) challenged his opinion.
Mr. Reddy became visibly angry and responded with similar profanity (including the oft-repeated “F” word). The level of agitation I witnessed was concerning. Later that afternoon, Mr. Reddy texted me asking for my thoughts. I called him and told him I was sorry the meeting had not gone well.
On May 2, 2025, South Carolina Freedom Caucus leadership and I attended another meeting at Mr. Reddy’s office in Charleston to discuss target districts to defeat “RINO” state legislators in the 2026 election.
During that meeting, Mr. Reddy told us he had invited Speaker Murrell Smith to his Isle of Palms home. He told us that Representative Smith had said to him, “You should run for governor,” and that Mrs. Smith had said to him, (“after 3 or 4 glasses of wine”), “my husband does not have a leadership bone in his body.”
I thought it unusual that Mr. Reddy would say such things in a meeting designed to identify districts where we could beat incumbent Republicans.
Following that meeting, a list of thirteen Tier 1(8) and Tier 2 (5)target districts was distributed by Mr. Donehue. On June 5, 2025, we participated in a Zoom call regarding legislative recruitment. Everyone seemed excited and on board.
At that point, I was still supportive of DOGE SC’s stated mission. After the Zoom call, Wesley Donehue sent an email outlining short-term, medium-term, and long-term goals. He informed us that Tanner Jones would lead an AI-powered voter targeting effort. I can only assume now that that may have been for Mr. Reddy’s eventual gubernatorial race. He also said that final target lists for new candidates to run against incumbents needed to be completed by July 21.
On June 10, 2025, I informed Mr. Reddy that I would be speaking at the Palmetto Club in Columbia and requested DOGE SC materials. A DOGE SC representative attended and provided literature that was distributed during the event.
After July 21, I contacted Mr. Donehue to ask about recruitment progress. He indicated that recruitment efforts had not been very successful. I informed him that representatives Pace, Cromer and I had recruited seven potential candidates. That lack of recruiting success by the DOGE SC team bothered me.
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A DIFFERENT DIRECTION
Soon after the July 21 deadline, I received a phone call from Mr. Reddy. During that conversation, he expressed a lack of confidence in Freedom Caucus chairman Jordan Pace and asked whom I believed was the strongest leader in the Freedom Caucus.
I replied, representative April Cromer. Within days, representative Cromer informed me that Mr. Reddy had contacted her and suggested that Representative Pace step aside as chairman and that he would prefer to work with her as leader of the organization.
Representative Cromer rejected the idea, explaining that representative Pace had been elected by the South Carolina Freedom Caucus members to serve a two-year term and that she would not participate in any effort to remove him.
As the summer progressed, I observed what appeared to be a gradual shift in Mr. Reddy’s political focus. He seemed to be moving closer to the Columbia establishment and farther away from the South Carolina Freedom Caucus.By October, that shift appeared complete.
Mr. Reddy had developed a close relationship with Speaker Murrell Smith. During a meeting in Charleston that I did not attend, Mr. Reddy reportedly asked representative Pace and representative Cromer whether the Freedom Caucus would rejoin the House Republican Caucus if members were no longer required to sign an oath.
I cannot speak to that discussion because I was not present.
What I can speak to is a conversation I personally had with Mr. Reddy on October 28, 2025. During a contentious phone call, I made it clear that I would not support rejoining the Republican Caucus unless Rule 16B was removed. This rule prohibits members from campaigning against incumbent Republican legislators seeking reelection.
I have consistently opposed any rule that limits free speech or restricts the ability of legislators to campaign for or against anyone they choose.
When I made that position clear, Mr. Reddy responded, “I will destroy you, and I will begin today.”
My response was simple: “bring it on.”
So the “team” that was to work to unseat RINO legislators was now condemned for not being willing to rejoin the group that has a rule that forbade “campaigning in any form against an incumbent Republican legislator.” Hmmm!
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THE WOFFORD COLLEGE DEBATE
On May 26, 2026, I attended the gubernatorial debate at Wofford College in Spartanburg. I was seated in the third row and paid close attention to the interactions among the candidates.
During the debate, both Mr. Reddy and Attorney General Alan Wilson took personal jabs at congressman Ralph Norman. At one point, I observed Mr. Reddy look toward Mr. Wilson, smile broadly, and make what appeared to be a gesture of approval.When the debate concluded, Congressman Norman turned and shook hands with Mr. Reddy.
Mr. Reddy went around him and made his way to attorney general Wilson, where the two exchanged a fist bump.
Voters can draw their own conclusions from what they saw and heard that evening. My question is simple: Why does the Columbia political establishment seem so uncomfortable with the candidacy of Ralph Norman? And why do some of its most prominent figures appear so eager to unite against him?
I have stated many times that my observation of South Carolina’s political power has two threads, 1. The lawyer/lawyer lobby thread, and 2. The big money thread.
I can assure you that Congressman Ralph Norman is not indebted to either.
One final thought. Recently, a very close and trusted friend told me that Mr. Reddy referred to me as “sanctimonious.”
If standing for integrity, keeping your word, and doing what you believe to be right is called sanctimonious, then perhaps we’ve reached a point where character itself has become controversial. I don’t claim to be perfect. I simply believe leaders should be consistent and try to do the right thing.
Dwight D. Eisenhower perhaps said it best: “the supreme quality for leadership is unquestionable integrity.”
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR…
Joe White is a retired businessman and proud member of the S.C. Freedom Caucus who represents South Carolina House District 40 in the General Assembly.
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SOUND OFF…
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